A variety of fan systems have been made and used over the years in a variety of contexts. For instance, various ceiling fans are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,284,960; U.S. Pat. No. 6,244,821; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,939,108. The disclosures of each of those U.S. patents are incorporated by reference herein. Another exemplary fan is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,079,823, entitled “FAN BLADES,” issued Dec. 20, 2011, the disclosure of which is also incorporated by reference herein. Alternatively, any other suitable fans may be used in conjunction with versions described herein.
The outer tip of a fan blade or airfoil may be finished by the addition of an aerodynamic tip or winglet. Merely exemplary winglets are described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,252,478, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein. Additional winglets are described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,934,907, entitled “CUFFED FAN BLADE MODIFICATIONS,” issued May 3, 2011, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein. In other variations, an angled extension may be added to a fan blade or airfoil, such as the angled fan blade extensions described in U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/892,339, entitled “ANGLED AIRFOIL EXTENSION FOR FAN BLADE,” filed Mar. 1, 2007, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein. Other suitable structures that may be associated with an outer tip of an airfoil or fan blade will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art. Alternatively, the outer tip of an airfoil or fan blade may be simply closed, or may lack any similar structure at all.
The interface of a fan blade and a fan hub may also be provided in a variety of ways. For instance, an interface component is described in U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/975,230, entitled “AERODYNAMIC INTERFACE COMPONENT FOR FAN BLADE,” filed Sep. 26, 2007, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein. Alternatively, the interface of a fan blade and a fan hub may include any other component or components, or may lack any similar structure at all.
Fans may also include a variety of mounting structures. For instance, a fan mounting structure is disclosed in U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/972,890, entitled “CEILING FAN WITH ANGLED MOUNTING,” filed Sep. 17, 2007, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein. In addition, a fan may include sensors or other features that are used to control, at least in part, operation of a fan system. For instance, such fan systems are disclosed in U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/978,860, entitled “CEILING FAN WITH CONCENTRIC STATIONARY TUBE AND/OR SAFETY FEATURES,” filed Oct. 10, 2007, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/025,852, entitled “AUTOMATIC CONTROL SYSTEM FOR CEILING FAN BASED ON TEMPERATURE DIFFERENTIALS,” filed Feb. 4, 2008, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein; and U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/014,948, entitled “AUTOMATIC CONTROL SYSTEM TO MINIMIZE OSCILLATION IN CEILING FANS,” filed Dec. 19, 2007, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein. Alternatively, any other suitable mounting structures and/or fan systems may be used in conjunction with versions described herein.
It may also be desirable in some settings for the output airflow from a fan to spread outward across a relatively broad area rather than being concentrated in a vertical column below the fan.
While a variety of components and features have been incorporated into fans and fan systems, it is believed that no one prior to the inventor has made or used the invention described in the appended claims.